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Thank you to the teams and fans

In previous years it was the Mercedes AMG GT3 #1 equipped with a BILSTEIN suspension and customised by Black Falcon that took the win at the 24 hr race at the Nürburgring. In 2017, the fast car, manned by Maro Engel, Adam Christodoulou, Yelmer Buurman and Manuel Metzger, had to settle with an overall position of 5th. Two places behind was the BILSTEIN-component equipped Ferrari 488 GT3 #22, occupied by Rinaldi Racing for the Wochenspiegel team, Monschau. The drivers, Georg Weiss, Oliver Kainz, Jochen Krumbach and Daniel Keilwitz really deserve an applause for this sensational overall position for a private team, victory in the ProAm class and the best time in 2nd qualifying. The blue-yellow sister car with #3 provided a gripping pursuit race for the spectators, making its way to the front after a lengthy repair stop, unfortunately to only finish in 23rd. Suspension manufacturer BILSTEIN exhibited sportsmanship and cheered on its long-term partners at Audi Sport Team Land in the final laps, whose R8 LMS was not out and about on BILSTEIN this year. “Naturally we would like to congratulate the winning team, our friends from Land Motorsport. Next year we will be on the hunt again!”, said BILSTEIN Motor Sport Manager, Martin Flick.

The race report for the last 90 minutes reads like an exciting thriller: After a number of hours leading, the R8 LMS #29 belonging to Markus Winkelhock, Kelvin van der Linde, Christopher Mies and Connor de Phillippi fell into severe difficulty due to a sensor defect and subsequently lagged behind without a chance. But then, a stroke of luck, an unexpected delay in the pit stop: the crew were able to react to the sudden change in weather with a change to wet tyres. The drivers subsequently knew to use their advantage and place doubt into the competitions’ minds, so much so that at the 45th 24 hr race, they were able to reach the very top of the podium. “I don’t know what to say, I thought the race was lost”, said the almost speechless driver, Markus Winkelhock, after his third Nürburgring triumph.

For the 205,000 spectators on-site, 20,000 more than in 2016, as well as the numerous fans in front of their TVs and those watching the live steams, the race could not have been more exciting. Lots of exciting dramas and consequences occurred even in the lower classes, which provided BILSTEIN with various reasons to celebrate. There were victories to announce in the SP8, V3, V4 and V6 classes. The Aston Martin GT8 #7, during its official debut took the crown in the SP8. At the helm were Darren Turner, Nicki Thiim, Florian Kamelger and Peter Cate. It was the Toyota GT86 of the team Mathol Racing e.V. with Claudius Karch and Wolfgang Weber which exhibited the best performance in the V3 category. Class V4 was dominated by the BMW 325i of Torsten Kratz, Oskar Sandberg and Kevin Warum (Securtal Sorg Rennsport) and V6 by the Porsche Carrera from Black Falcon Team TMD Friction, driven by Saud Al Faisal, Thomas Bolz, Fidel Leib and Aurel Schoeller. Whether the hunter or the hunted, victor or defeated, driver, crew member or fan: BILSTEIN would once again like to thank all its supporters. And naturally, no stone will be left unturned in re-conquering the platform in 2018.